A Russian soldier standing next to an Orlan-10 uncrewed aerial reconnaissance vehicle. Photo via Wikimedia.

UK intel: Russian forces enter Selydove, providing additional options for advancing to Pokrovsk

October 25, 2024

By Ukraine

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Russian forces have almost certainly advanced into the coal mining town of Selydove, around 13 km southeast from the major logistics hub of Pokrovsk in the east of Ukraine.

Russia’s capture of the coal mining town of Selydove could open up a new route to the crucial logistics hub of Pokrovsk. The intensifying ground assault, combined with increasing levels of drone attacks targeting Ukrainian infrastructure, suggests Russia is mounting a coordinated campaign to exploit vulnerabilities in Ukraine’s defenses and strain its resources as winter approaches.

As reported by the UK Ministry of Defense, the town remains contested, with fighting likely continuing to take place within the town center. Selydove is the last significant urban area screening the southern flank of Pokrovsk as well as the E50 highway – which connects Selydove to Pokrovsk.

Selydove (indicated by the marker), with Pokrovsk to the northwest. Photo via DeepState.ua.

Since the beginning of October 2024, the rate of advance of the Russian forces towards Pokrovsk had slowed significantly, with Russian troops remaining within approximately 7 km of the city.

Russian Armed Forces have recently directed resources towards the southern part of the axis, targeting Selydove and partially encircling the town. According to British military analysts, Russia likely aims to use the E50 highway as a secondary route of advance to Pokrovsk if Selydove is taken.

Large-scale uncrewed aerial attacks are increasing

In addition, UK military intelligence reports that Russia launched over 1,300 ”One Way Attack Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles” (OWA-UAVs) into Ukraine during September 2024.

This represents the highest number of OWA-UVAs launched in a month since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. Based on current rates, it is almost certain that Russia will surpass that number in October 2024.

It is unclear whether Russia can sustain this rate through the remainder of 2024. However, Russia is almost certainly expanding its capacity to conduct large scale OWA-UAV attacks against Ukraine, supplementing Iranian supply with increasing domestic production, British military intel reveals.

Russia utilizes its OWA UAVs against a multitude of targets, particularly energy infrastructure, given their ability to strike deep into Ukrainian territory, maintaining pressure on the Ukrainian Air Defense system.

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